Published on: 2026-10-11
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
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At the center for the breeding of rare animal species of the Moscow Zoo, which is subordinate to the city Department of Culture, four Sarmatian racers gave birth to 21 offspring. These rare, red-listed snakes can be seen in the exhibition in the old part of the zoo. The ticket booking service can help you reserve tickets “Mosbilet”.
“Since 2012, Sarmatian ratsnakes from the Rostov region have been living and reproducing in our laboratories. We obtained them from the Tula Exotarium. The eggs were placed in a special incubator where they were kept for 54–59 days at a temperature of 26–27 degrees Celsius. Young Sarmatian ratsnakes look nothing like adults: the babies are white-gray with a zigzag stripe on their back. In appearance, they strongly resemble the venomous steppe viper,” shared Svetlana Akulova, General Director of the Moscow Zoo.
Herpetologists at the breeding center plan to raise the offspring until next year, and then, after completing all necessary paperwork, release them into the wild to increase the local population.
Sarmatian, or Pallase’s, ratsnakes are non-venomous snakes from the Colubridae family. They inhabit southern Russia, Bulgaria, Romania, as well as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. The average length of adult specimens is up to 1.5 meters, with large ratsnakes reaching nearly two meters.
These reptiles are excellent climbers on rocks and trees; they bask and search for food on branches, and hide in soil cracks, under stones, and in rodent burrows. During the day, snakes can have two peaks of activity: at sunrise they come out of shelters, bask until 9:00–10:00, then hide and reappear on the surface around 15:00.
At the beginning of 2025, the Moscow Zoo set a world record for the number of animal species represented: at that time, it housed 1,253 species. By 2026, their number had approached 1,280. This result was made possible thanks to the many years of work by zoologists, veterinarians, keepers, and other specialists. You can always come to see the zoo’s inhabitants online.
A steppe eagle chick was born at the Moscow ZooThree bush dogs were born at the Moscow Zoo
The event program of the Moscow Zoo contributes to achieving the goals and objectives of the national project “Environmental well-being”. Learn more about Russia’s national projects and the capital’s contribution at special page.
A large-scale project is presented on the mos.ru portal special project, dedicated to the development of key areas of Moscow. These include transport, industry, healthcare, education, sports, and the construction sector. The special project helps to learn how the capital has changed over the past years, what initiatives, aimed at making citizens’ lives even more comfortable, are currently being implemented, and what awaits Moscow and its residents in the near future.
On the project page “Culture, Heritage, and Leisure Industry” one can learn about how architectural monuments are preserved in the capital.
Moscow is the center of the country’s cultural life and ranks among the leading megacities in terms of the number of museums and exhibition halls. The city has established a film cluster that combines the “Moskino” film factory on Ryazansky Avenue, the Gorky Film Studio, and the “Moskino” film park.
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